Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1297579
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 17, 2020 31 NOTRE DAME HEAD COACH BRIAN KELLY … On sixth-year senior Shaun Crawford moving from safety to cornerback: "[Sophomore cornerback] Cam Hart got out of quarantine yesterday. [Fifth-year senior corner- back Nick] McCloud was unavailable until Thursday of this week. [Freshman cornerback] Clarence Lewis was unavailable until Thursday of this week. "We're down three corners that played quite a bit. So it was TaRiq [Bracy] and a bunch of freshmen that really weren't particularly ready. Shaun had played the position, so he was again, selfless. He moved over to the cornerback position and bailed us out in a very, very difficult time, playing a position that he hadn't been repping at all be- cause he had played all those safety reps." On the eye injury to fifth-year senior left tackle Liam Eichenberg, who missed a portion of the second half: "I don't make those decisions. I defer to our medical profes- sionals, and they felt like once they put an eye shield on and they got the swelling down and he had full vision, [he could go back in]. "They're always going to err on the safety end of things. They're never going to put a kid back in unless they feel like they can protect themselves and they can be effective. Then I asked Liam, 'Liam, how do you feel about play- ing?' He said, 'I feel great. I want to go back in there.' So there wasn't any hesitation at all." NOTRE DAME FIFTH-YEAR SENIOR QUARTERBACK IAN BOOK … On how the offense performed against Florida State: "First off, I thought we played a great game on offense. After every game, there's going to be stuff to go back and watch and film and get better at, that's for sure. There's never a perfect game, but the energy was good. "Obviously, running the ball was unbelievable. I just thought it was a clean game for us on offense after an early mistake, and we were able to fix that." NOTRE DAME SOPHOMORE SAFETY KYLE HAMILTON … On the play of Shaun Crawford, who moved from safety to corner during the week: "Shaun is one of the best players on this team. He's played more snaps than everybody in the DB room combined. He's seen a lot of football, he knows what he's doing. You never really have to worry about him doing his job. "It just rubs off on everybody else in the room, because we just want to all be great and emulate what others are doing, whether it be good stuff or telling them what they need to improve on. I think we all hold each other ac- countable. The room as a whole is creating a good bond right now." On the big hits from senior rover Jeremiah Owusu- Koramoah: "You guys don't get to see it, but he does that every day in practice. It's just another day playing football with Owusu. "He's one of the most athletic, versatile players I've ever played with. He shows you guys every Saturday, but shows us Monday through Sunday. It's just a blessing to be able to play with a guy like that. Like I said, we just feed off his energy as a defense." NOTRE DAME JUNIOR LINEBACKER BO BAUER … On what he did to earn consistent playing time this season: "I took my energy level from about a 10 to a four and was able to focus while doing that. I was really able to spend extra time understanding what my purpose was and where I was supposed to go. "Then I just slowed everything down. Through that pro- cess, I wasn't expecting [to play at the nickel linebacker]. But the opportunity was presented, and I continue to try to capitalize on that every day, every practice, every rep." NOTRE DAME SOPHOMORE RUNNING BACK KYREN WILLIAMS … On why he's so good at powering through defenders for extra yards: "Growing up, I always played defense. My first love is defense. I don't ever shy away from con- tact. I embrace contact." NOTRE DAME FIFTH-YEAR SENIOR WIDE RECEIVER JAVON MCKINLEY … On how the trainers and medical staff were able to save the season after the team suffered an outbreak: "That was actually my first thought when the operation shut down — if I'm going to play again? "But the coaches, they reassured us. They said we have a great medical staff with us, and they got us to where we needed to be, and took the necessary precautions. And within 10 days, we were able to get back together with the guys who were cleared and then slowly work in the other guys who did get the virus, and we were able to play to- day. So we're very thankful for all of them." — Andrew Mentock FROM THE LOCKER ROOM Junior linebacker Bo Bauer (No. 52) contributed four stops, two tackles for loss and one sack against the Seminoles. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS